AJK can produce 20,000MW for Pakistan: Yaqub

LAHORE – The Nation Editor-in-Chief and Nazaria-i-Pakistan Trust Chairman Majid Nizami has asked the people of Pakistan to vote for those who can wage Jihad on India to free Kashmir, to make Pakistan as dreamt by Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Allama Muhammad Iqbal. Speaking at various sessions of the ongoing 4th Nazaria-i-Pakistan Conference under the aegis of Nazaria-i-Pakistan Trust here on Friday, Mr Nizami advocated that even an atomic war against India was not out of the question if it was needed to free the jugular vein of Pakistan. Four sessions were held on the second day of the NPC which attracted large a number of people from all walk of life. Azad Jammu Kashmir President Sardar Muhammad Yaqub Khan and former finance minister Shaukat Tareen were invited as chief guests to the NPC sessions on the second day of the conference. The 3-day conference proceedings will end on Saturday.Terming the recommendations made during Friday proceedings of the NPC as a solution for the country’s problems, Majid Nizami regretted that the rulers were not willing to act in right direction. “They (rulers) are mum on the Indian act of blocking Pakistan’s water flowing through Kashmir which has severely affected agriculture and made our fields barren.” Majid Nizami observed. He warned that if Kashmir was not freed from Indian occupancy, the country would turn into desert. He added that he had strong sentiments towards Kashmir because his wife was of Kashmiri origin and recalled the days when he had visited Kashmir in 1947. AJK President Sardar Muhammad Yaqub said that there can be no threat to the Kashmir cause and Pakistan as long as people like Majid Nizami are there. While talking about the ongoing energy crisis, Sardar Yaqub said AJK could generate 18 to 20 thousand megawatts of electricity, however the government has only employed the valley’s resources to generate 100 MW of electricity.The AJK President portrayed a the true picture of Indian atrocities in the held valley saying that there was no peace as the bodies of Kashmiri men killed by Indian forces keep floating to this side with the Neelam river. He asserted that Kashmiris are not terrorists; in fact their struggle is to secure their right to self-determination under the UN resolutions. The AJK President said that dialogue between India and Pakistan on the resolution of Kashmir dispute cannot succeed unless Kashmiris are made a part of the discussion. He opposed Indian efforts to become a permanent member of the UNSC, asking “How a terrorist state could get that status?” Sardar Yaqub applauded the contributions of the people of Pakistan for the rehabilitation of quake victims in Kashmir. He also invited the members of Nazaria Pakistan Trust to visit Kashmir to hold such a conference. Speaking on the occasion, former federal minister for finance Shaukat Tareen, called to increase the tax to GDP ratio for the ultimate economic welfare of the public. He was delivering a lecture at NPC on the topic of “The steps needed to bring Pakistan out of current economic crisis”. He briefed the audience about his Nine Points Agenda and the actions he and his team had taken for the revival of industry and agriculture sectors in the country. He said a broader but rational and balanced tax structure was needed, but it requires a strong political will on part of the government. He underlined the need for enhancing tax to GDP ratio to 15 to 20 percent to achieve 7 to 8 percent growth in the economy. He added that rising economies like China, Turkey and India have enhanced their tax to GDP ratio beyond 20 percent to maintain higher GDP growth. Shaukat Tareen said his ministry had devised a five-year plan for shifting from indirect to direct taxes, expanding the tax base and taxing the untaxed sectors. However, he faced resistance in implementing his nine-point agenda and finally he was shown the door by powerful lobbies. Talking about the ongoing power crisis in the country, Shaukat Tareen said that the government should build hydro-power generation units, to fulfil the energy needs of the country. He told the audience that he had serious reservations over rental power projects.He added that the constitution of Pakistan places agriculture within the provincial purview. However, provincial tax collection efforts are weak, with low compliance, numerous exemptions, and special treatment regimes. Thus, the revenue generated from agriculture is negligible although it is technically subject to income tax and accounts for 21 per cent of GDP. At the end of the session Majid Nizami presented Shields to Sardar Yaqub , Shaukat Tareen, Col (retd) Jamshed Ahmad Tareen, Mian A Majid, Naeem Hussain Chattha, Brig (retd) Zafar Iqbal, Col (retd) Ikramullah, Muhammad Aslam Kamboh and Dr MA Soofi.